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Photo – Gavin Evans

Boxing is a sport you either love or hate. The lovers insist that is a great way for men from poor socio-economic backgrounds to gain focus and discipline while offering them the opportunity to do something meaningful with their lives. The haters insist it’s just two grown men belting the stuffing out of each other. After watching Beautiful Burnout, both sides have equally valid arguments

Cameron Burns (Kevin Guthrie) is a young man just starting out in the game of fisticuffs. He envisages a successful career and the accompanying large bundles of cash. First, he must convince his coach Bobby (Ewan Stewart), that he has what it takes to get himself on the card of a professional boxing bout.

Beautiful Burnout is collaboration between Frantic Assembly who staged the movement piece Stockholm at Sydney Theatre Company in 2010 and the National Theatre of Scotland. This is the National Theatre’s second appearance at the Sydney Festival following Black Watch in 2008, which was about a division of the Scottish Army. It was actually while working on Black Watch that director/choreographers Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett were invited to a boxing gym in Brooklyn New York. It is not hard to see why they were fascinated by the world of boxing. The lives of both soldiers and boxers involve hours of highly disciplined physical training resulting in athleticism and precision. The role of coaches and commanding officers are similar too. You can easily picture Bobby being in charge of a battalion somewhere.

Bryony Lavery’s script relies heavily on the narrative conventions used in any tale of a young battler trying to achieve sporting success. For example, There is the authoritarian coach trying to push his charges beyond their limits, believing that the end always justifies the means. These cliché’s are necessary to the extent that they establish the basic architecture for the story, but they quickly become tiresome if they are not developed beyond these starting points. A good example of this is Carlotta (Blythe Duff), Cameron’s mother. She has all the usual motherly gripes about doing too much house work and having to a feed growing boy. She also frets over her son being involved in such a violent sport. It is frustrating to see her character not developed beyond these cliché’s, however the conclusion certainly justifies her role in the play,

This is an ensemble piece which does not dig deep enough into the story of each character and therefore appears to have too many characters. Dina (Vicki Manderson), the only female boxer, is almost deserving of a story of her own, illustrating her struggles in the ultra testosterone filled world of boxing. Coach Bobby is the most interesting character and deserves more attention. He is “God” in his own boxing gym but only a tiny player in the world of professional boxing.

As you might expect the highlight of the play is the choreographed boxing matches. The movements of boxers are copied to near perfection. You really do feel like you’re ringside. The only thing missing is Don King’s giant hair. The way in which the boxers freeze while the story takes place inside their heads is hypnotic.

The pounding doof doof music of Underworld features heavily in the play. It is well used to capture the adrenalin fuelled world of the boxing gym and ring. Underworld plays constantly in Graham and Hoggets rehearsal, rooms so they felt it was only a matter of time before the music found its way into one of their productions. The title of the play actually comes from an Underworld song.

The last 15 minutes crystallise the play superbly. The ending will move you, even if the rest is bit of a mixed bag.


Frantic Assembly and National Theatre of Scotland
Beautiful Burnout
by Bryony Lavery

Directed by Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett

Venue: York Theatre | Seymour Centre, Chippendale
Dates: January 18 – 29, 2012
Tickets: $75 – $60
Bookings: 1300 668 812


Part of the 2012 Sydney Festival